


The Lake House

by Stonyinspirationwriter



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Angry Tony Stark, Angst with a Happy Ending, Domestic, Domestic Bliss, Domestic Disputes, Fluff and Angst, Growing Old Together, Loving Marriage, M/M, Married Life, Minor Original Character(s), Old Married Couple, lake house, minor language, original child - Freeform, retreat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-17
Updated: 2015-07-17
Packaged: 2018-04-09 16:52:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,310
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4356941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stonyinspirationwriter/pseuds/Stonyinspirationwriter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>(Inspired by a given prompt) Tony and Steve own a small house at a lake where they can retreat to if their lives become too stressful. A calming, lovely place where they can simply focus on family, as well as their marriage.</p><p>There was a time where neither of them were sure their marriage would last, and it's likely it may not have if it weren't for The Lake House.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Lake House

His thumb gently caresses the skin of his husband’s hand. The skin, much like his husband, is surprisingly soft despite the gruesomely strenuous years spent as a soldier, and then as an Avenger. They’re seated side by side on the deck with interlocked fingers, watching as the fiery orange sun dipped behind silhouetted mountains, coloring the sky and brushing the surface of the lake.

If anyone were to ask Tony what his favorite place in the world was, his mind would immediately go to the lake house. The ghosts of many happy memories inhabited the peaceful property. Memories of languid summer days and cozy winters. Care-free, simple days spend surrounded by family. No matter how much time had passed or how intrusive life became, Tony and Steve had always found time to retreat to their sanctuary on the lake.

The house was simple, warm, and quaint, with a rustic charm. A far cry from any of the luxury housing Tony had been bred to be accustomed to. Steve, for that matter, had taken complete rein in handling the furnishings. It was remote, which offered privacy, as well as security from detection. No cellphones, no distractions, Steve had enforced upon purchasing the property, and the rule still stood even to this date. As difficult as that rule had initially seemed to a man rooted so heavily in technology, it had proven surprisingly easy for Tony.

They had initially purchased the lake house to help establish communication between the two of them. The years had irreversibly changed them, dimmed their spirits, tortured their minds, inevitably taking a toll on their marriage. Using the place as a form of escape had been Steve’s idea. They had needed a retreat, a tangible place where they could block out the noises of life and simply focus on each other. It’s difficult to determine whether the lake house was the major stepping stone in repairing their relationship, but one thing remained certain: this was a place of second chances.

With the birth of their son, and later their daughter, the getaway had been expanded to a family vacation spot, which that also included their Avenger family. They would go for swims in the lake, and hikes in the woods. Clint would recount his thrilling personal missions—with added narration from Natasha—as they made s’mores around the fire pit. It was a relief for everyone, an opportunity to set into a simpler world safe from the world they were use to. It provided a nice of normalcy—well, as normal as their odd family could ever be.

Even now that they are retired and their children are grown and their Avenger family is scattered around the globe, Steve and Tony still come back.

Tony jerks awake at the sound of his name.

“Let’s go inside, Love”, Steve says, standing over Tony with his hand on his shoulder. The sun has set and it’s dark.

“Did I fall asleep?” Tony asks, clearly disoriented. “When had that happened?”

“It’s been a long day”, Steve offers. He helps Tony slowly rise to his feet. Despite the strain of the arc reactor on his aging body, Tony was in overall good health for a man his age. But even that couldn’t remedy the pains and frailty that age brings. He’s constantly fighting an ongoing battle with fatigue these days, which won’t go away no matter how much sleep he gets. It’ gotten much more difficult to do even the simplest of tasks.

Tony gives a still startled yelp as he is suddenly scooped off his feet into Steve’s strong arms. Steve laughs.“What are you doing?” Tony pretends to be upset but the smile creeping at the corner of his mouth gives him away.

“Carrying you”, Steve simply states, a smug smile on his face.

After all this time Steve hasn’t physically aged much, although he no longer exactly resembles his thirty year old self. Although his skin is still fairly smooth despite a few faint laugh lines—and the one gray hair Steve insists is there, although Tony calls bullshit on that— it is apparent that it is the face of someone that has seem much more than the average person can even fathom. Steve wears age differently than everyone else. It’s only truly revealed in the depths of his wisdom filled eyes.

“Why don’t you make yourself useful and carry me to the bedroom?”

They change into their pajamas and watch a movie in bed—a television to watch movies is the only technology allowed—it’s a silly romantic comedy that they spend most of the time mocking. There’s a point nearing the end of the movie where Tony grows silent, and it’s not because he’s grow a sudden interest in the silly flick.

“A lot of memories here…” Tony said, breaking the silence. The words so softly spoken, yet so sudden that they could have flown in with the breeze. Steve shifts from his back onto his side. “Yeah.” Steve answers quietly, a fond smile on his lips. “Lots of nostalgia.” His luminous blue eyes search Tony’s face as he patiently waits for him to continue.

“Who’d have thought we would have made it this far?” Tony’s staring blankly at the television screen.

“What do you mean?”

“You, me, this—everything.” Tony makes a grand gesture with his hand that’s meant to include everything around them.

“Are you talking about—”

“Yeah, I am. We had our moments. I’m not the easiest person to live with. And I wasn’t always positive that we would persevere.”

There were many times where their future seemed uncertain. It’s impossible to forget about all the times they had fought together, as well as against each other. All the times they had almost called it quits on their relationship. Their lives were in constant danger, and there was never any certainty that they would ever get to see each other again. During any of those times they both could have died without a chance at reconciliation.

“I had my doubts too, in the beginning.” Steve admitted. “But I’m glad we held on.”

“Guess we’re just too stubborn.” Tony gives him a loving smile.

“I guess we are.” Steve cups the side of Tony’s face and presses his lips against his. “But for the record”, he declares after they part, “you are a pain in the ass!”

“Moi?” Tony said innocently. “What about you, Captain Hard ass? I’m sorry honey, but you surpassed me long ago.”

“Keep dreaming, Shell-head!”

“You have forgotten, Old Man. It must be an age thing….”

“Shut up, Old Man.”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Their discovery of the lake house had been a complete fluke. Ironically, it had been during one of their worst arguments.

“What was the point of coming here if you’re just gonna give me the silent treatment?” Steve had been staring at a seething Tony for the past ten minutes. He didn’t answer Steve; his eyes unmoving as he stared ahead at the windshield. His knuckles were white from gripping the steering wheel too tightly.

They had brushed past death during the latest mission, and rather than ride back with the others, they had chosen to take the scenic route through the country side. Steve figured Tony was either lost, or planning to murder him and drop his body roadside.

“Tony, this is ridiculous”, Steve said, frustration bubbling within him.

“Well, what the fuck do you want me to say, Steve!” Tony suddenly snapped, slightly startling Steve. “You want to talk? Let’s talk about how completely selfish and deceptive you are!”

“I did what I felt was right—-”

“No! Don’t you dare give me that righteous Captain America crap! This is about you, Steve. About what you were so willing to do.” Tony was seething with anger, his hands shaking.

“I would do anything to protect my family—You, The Avengers.” Steve calmly stated.

“Bullshit! You didn’t even consider us.”

“How dare you say something like that to me? You know damn well that’s not true! Everything I do is for my family.”

“Then how could you possibly believe that delivering yourself to your own death could be beneficial to this family—to the team?”

“They were going to kill you! I couldn’t get anyone else involved.” Just the thought of someone hurting his family brought an awful weight on his chest.

“We would have figured something out together”, Tony insisted. “We could have—-”

“We could have both been killed”, Steve finished. “You would have taken my place and have gotten yourself killed.” Tony looked as though he wear about to say something but he drew back his lips and swallowed the words. “I had the stronger chance for survival”, Steve quietly stated.

“I’m your husband, Steve. It wasn’t your choice to make.”

“Do you of all people really want to start a conversation on choice? Isn’t that hypocritical.” Steve blurted. He watched as Tony’s expression changed from shock into a look of betrayal. The pulled to the side and came to a sudden fault, jerking them both forward.

“Screw you”, Tony said, pointing an aggressive finger at Steve. “I can’t be here with you right now”, he said, swinging the car door open.

“Tony—-”

The car door slammed behind him.

“Fuck.” Steve grumbled to himself. He turned off the ignition and preceded to follow Tony, who was speed walking down the road. Steve quickly catching up only annoyed him further.

“Tony, where are you going?”

“Tony continued to walk. They were now blindly trudging through the forest.

“You’re being childish. It’s over!”

Tony didn’t respond.

“I was only doing what I thought was right! You would have done the exact same thing!”

“That’s the problem!” Tony said, stopping in his tracks. “Everything we do is because we are trying to protect each other. But it's what’s tearing us apart.”

Steve opened his mouth to speak but he instead let out a breath of air. He loved Tony more than anything in the world, but their marriage had been crumbling. A voice inside his head considered giving up entirely, but he quickly pushed the voice out of his mind. _No._ That would _never_ be an option. They had been through too much together.

Steve placed his hands on Tony’s shoulders, looking him squarely in the eyes.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. We’re partners, in every sense of the word. Somewhere along the way we forgot that.” Their foreheads were touching, and they were gasping for air as the weight of the situation--of everything that had been consistently building up --- was finally distributed between the both of them so that they may evenly bear the weight together.

“I just don’t know how to keep you safe.” Tony whispered.

“I know. I don’t either.”

“Let’s go some place.”

“Where?”

“Let’s just get lost for a while.”

They walked around for a while, hand in hand, letting everything off of their chest. They had no destination in mind, just simply enjoying the beautiful woods and listening to each other. It was during this time that Steve spotted the lake house and insisted they take a look at the property.

“This is it. This is the place.” Steve said, his eyes lighting up with excitement. The two men stood on the deck, overlooking the glorious lake that extends from the property; the sun reflecting off the lake’s pristine surface.

“It is beautiful.” Tony said, admiring the glint in Steve’s eyes, and the wideness of his smile.

“It’s perfect”, Steve said. “No technology, no distractions. Just us.”

"No technology?" Tony feigned a moment of indecisiveness. "But then, all I'll have is a sexy, hopefully naked, Super Soldier at my disposal. How will I ever occupy the time..." Tony winked and flashed Steve a mischievous grin. Steve playfully rolled his eyes before deeply kissing him. When Steve pulled away, he had a huge smile on his face. "If it’ll keep that grin on your face, we’ll take it, then.” Tony confirmed. 

“Trust me, this place will do us a lot of good.” Steve assured him, wrapping him arms around Tony from behind as they both took in their new view.“Oh, and by the way", Steve continued, "I’ll be handling the furnishing.” 

The marriage wasn’t an instant fix, but this provided the new start they needed.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

“Papa’s got you.” Steve said, holding his infant son to his chest as he waded through the lake. The baby whined as the cool water grazed his tiny feet. “Shhh. It’s okay. Papa won’t let anything happen to you.” He turns them around in a small circle, making a noise with his lips that resembled the sound of a motor boat. The baby smiles, his feet tapping against the waters surface. Tony’s seated on the dock, alternating between reading his book—an actual book—and watching his family. He’s wearing his purple lens sunglasses.

Once it’s apparent the baby has had enough, they also join him. Within a few minutes their son is wrapped in a towel and fast asleep in Tony’s arms.

“And…he’s gone”,Tony jokes.

“He’s going to be out for hours”, Steve agrees, gently brushing his pinky finger against one of the baby’s chubby cheeks.

The two men sit in comfortable silence, alternating between watching the setting sun and the slow rise and fall of their son’s little chest.

“Years from now, when we’re old and gray, and this little guy is married with his own kids, you think we’ll still come here?” Steve asks.

“Watch it, one of us has already started graying”, Tony warns. Steve rolls his eyes. “It’s our place, isn’t it?" Tony states. "We’ll becoming here when we’re old, gray, and you're hopefully fat.”

Steve nods, having not yet processed what Tony had just said. “Hey!” Steve finally says, prompting Tony into a fit of laughter that Steve quickly joins.


End file.
